Growing up my father has always been the central figure in my life. The dynamic of our relationship has changed over the years but I find myself learning something new from him practically every time I come home to visit.

When I was a little girl my dad and I had quite the unique friendship. For a lot of my childhood he worked on cars, which resulted in hours of sitting in a garage watching my dad and his friends sanding down the body of cars. He also used to have a beautiful blue 1969 hardtop impala. My dad, step mom, and I spent countless hours at car shows all around the city. Those are the days I got to sleep in the back of the car listening to good music that I still remember the lyrics to 10-15 years later.

Regardless of having to work, my dad made time to come visit me at recess growing up. He would play tag with all of my friends. I was the kid with the cool parent who came to hang out at school and all of the students loved him. As I grew older and we started having more field trips, he often volunteered to be a parent chaperone. Even in middle school he was one of the parent drivers to Webberville when national junior honor society was recycling newspapers. A car ride with my father is never “ordinary” or boring. Most car rides resulted in signing songs with different lyrics and many years of laughter.

I was always the awkward kid at school that didn’t entirely fit in for quite some time. My friends would come over and meet my parents and ask what was wrong with me and ask me why I wasn’t more like my family.

Growing up my dad was very busy with work. I bust his chops a lot about being too busy for my sporting events. Saying that, I do realize he always had a lot on his plate. His strong work ethic is honestly one of the things compelling me to write this article.

I couldn’t be more proud of my dad. Over the course of the past three years, I watched my dad have a dream, start from the bottom, and work his way to success. He never once gave up, he woke up each morning with the belief that God would help him get to where he wanted to go. For those of you who don’t know my father, he is the owner of OCD lawn care, which is rapidly growing. If anyone needs lawn care service, I assure you my dad’s work would not disappoint you.

Not only have I watched his business grow, I have watched him grow in the word of God. Honestly I can’t express how inspirational my father is on a daily basis. Whether it be doing someone’s lawn for free, or stopping to help the homeless, my dad is always doing something that makes me want to be a better person. His kindness makes my heart warm. He’s done well for himself, his family, and tries to better the lives of the people around him.

In addition to owning a successful growing business and being a warm hearted giving person, our relationship has also grown over the years. After moving out it felt like my dad knew exactly when to text me if I was having a bad day. His positivity and support really helps cheer me up on the hard days. He has really allowed me to become my own person over the past year and has stood behind the majority of my decisions. I am grateful to have my dad and step mom in my life as I progress through life. My dad never ceases to amaze me lately and I am proud to have him as my father and I am excited to see the things he will teach my sister as she ages. He has evolved into a new person and I know he will only continue to grow and prosper.